Kochi: Bharatiya Janata Party Kerala president P S Sreedharan Pillai seems to be in a spot of bother over a purported telephonic talk he had with Sabarimala head priest Kandararu Rajevaru on shutting down the shrine if women of child-bearing age were to enter it.
Even while claiming that he was not sure whether it was tantri or one of his family members to whom he had spoken to, Pillai's own petition at the High Court said he had spoken to tantri Kandararu Rajeevaru.
Television channels had aired a video clip last week in which Pillai purportedly is heard saying at a Yuva Morcha meeting that the head priest had consulted him before threatening to close the shrine in case women in the 'barred' age group of 10-50 entered it to offer prayers. However, after tantri denied calling the BJP leader, Pillai on Saturday made a complete volte-face saying someone else in the tantri's family had sought his views.
In his petition, Pillai, a lawyer, has sought quashing of a case filed by the police against him over his leaked speech at the Yuva Morcha conference. Relevant parts of his remarks are also included in the petition in a bid to establish that he spoke to the tantri only on whether a contempt of court charge would arise from the priest's planned bid to close down the Sabarimala shrine.
Pillai's own words as mentioned in the petition run like this: “I was one of the people the tantri had called at that time. When he called I told him... the priest is not alone. Contempt of court charges against him won't hold. If at all any contempt of court case is to be charged, we will be the first to be booked. When I assured him he won't be left alone, Rajeevaru responded 'I need only your word sir,' and took a firm decision that day.”
However, Pillai repeated even on Sunday that he doesn't know whether it was the tantri who called. "I'm saying I'm not sure, because I'm not sure. I believe the tantri's statement that he never called me. I had received hundreds of phone calls on October 19. I'm not sure who all called. Those who should make inquiries are free to find out if anybody else had called,” he said at Edappal.
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